1. Kansas (#4) (10-0) - Iowa State - the Fighting Manginos have been winning at home and on the road....in the end we will know if they are #1 because they will have to play Missouri and possibly Oklahoma....if they win those games, then this lofty spot is deserving....if they lose, then everything will wash out in the end...
2. Oregon (#2) (8-1) - @ Arizona (Thur) - the Ducks had the week off....Dennis Dixon had time to heal his banged up knee....they are ready for the final push....
3. LSU (#3) (9-1) - @ Ole Miss - the Tigers had a deserving breather versus La. Tech....now it is back to the SEC meatgrinder....
4. Oklahoma (#5) (9-1) - @ Texas Tech - the Sooners should take out Tech....but if they don’t come with their A game, the Red Raiders are capable of the upset....what was a bit disturbing in their big win over Baylor was that the Bears did amass 450 total yards of offense....something to keep an eye on....
5. West Virginia (#6) (8-1) - @ Cincinnati- West Virginia has total control of their destiny, but they have to be careful when they travel to the Queen City....the Bearcats can be a pesky bunch....
6. Missouri (#7) (9-1) - @ Kansas State - Nebraska dropped 73 on K-State....Mizzou won’t score 73, but they will win easily.....
7. Southern Cal (#10) (8-2) - BYE - USC has been laying low....but if they win out, the Trojans will probably be back in the Rose Bowl....their next game is on Thanksgiving at Arizona State....
8. Georgia (#8) (8-2) - Kentucky - the Dawgs may be the hottest team in the land....they surprised everyone by wearing black jerseys for the first time...also, remember the name Knowshon Moreno....he is a red-shirt freshman running back with a very bright future....
9. Ohio State (#1) (10-1) - @ Michigan - the Buckeyes were unmasked by The Juice.....if OSU wins against Michigan, and a lot of upsets happen over the last 3 weeks, it is still possible that Tressel’s crew could slither back into the BCS title game....
10. Arizona State (#9) (9-1) - BYE - like the Trojans, ASU has the week off to prepare for their Turkey Day match-up....
11. Virginia Tech (#11) (8-2) - Miami (Fla) - I think Miami (Ohio) would give the Hokies a better game than the Hurricanes will this week after their embarrassing shut-out to Virginia....
12. Texas (#13) (9-2) - BYE - the Longhorns have 1 game left - against A&M.....but Mack Brown’s team has to be regretting that home loss to Kansas State....
13. Boise State (#15) (9-1) - Idaho - sure Hawaii and Boise State are in the same conference....and sure Hawaii is one of only 2 undefeated teams left....but to me, Hawaii runs a gimmicky offense and has to earn the right to crack the top 16.....Boise State has already earned their stripes after beating OU in the Fiesta Bowl....
14. Florida (NR) (7-3) - Fla. Atlantic - the Gators are done with their SEC schedule and finished 5-3 in conference....they are still a quality team....
15. Clemson (NR) (8-2) - Boston College - a win this week over the Eagles gives Clemson their first Atlantic Division title and the right to play in the ACC title game...Clemson wins - BIG.....
16. Virginia (NR) (9-2) - BYE - the Yahoos get the week off after their scrimmage at Miami....who would have thought Miami would have lost 48-0 in their last game ever in the Orange Bowl?....
+1 Illinois (8-3) - the Illini were a +1 team earlier this season....but they get the nod again after going into Columbus and beating the supposed #1 team....
Dropped out
- Michigan (8-3) - a very uninspiring performace at Wisconsin...but a win this week against Ohio State gets them to the Rose Bowl
- Boston College (8-2) - they too are a pretender...but a win at Clemson this week gets them in the ACC title game
- Connecticut (8-2) - a smashing at Cincinnati....but if they win out, they go to the Orange Bowl...
Here are some articles to check out:
Ohio State - Michigan Game
Columbus Dispatch sports columnist Bob Hunter writes how Ohio State's dream season may be over... "What's the saying? If it seems too good to be true, it probably is? Those who heeded it might not be quite as stunned by the cruel surprise party that Illinois hatched yesterday in Ohio Stadium." ..... Bob Hunter - Columbus Dispatch
Detroit Free Press sports columnist Doug Karsch writes that Michigan has some major concerns on defense as an angry Ohio State team heads north..... "Jim Tressel is gonna love the idea of turning around and handing it off to the Wells boys repeatedly. They have to shore up the rush defense. It doesn't help when you can't move the chains." .... Doug Karsch - Detroit Free Press
You have to check out one of the greatest boxscores ever.....Navy beat N. Texas State 74-62 and only threw six passes the entire game.... Navy-N. Texas State Boxscore
Never been to the Orange Bowl?....check out the great video that ESPN.com put together.... Orange Bowl
Georgia head coach Mark Richt stunned his team and fans as the Bulldogs came out clad in black jerseys for their game against Auburn..... Chip Towers - Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Notre Dame sinks even lower with another loss to a military academy.... "The Notre Dame fifth-year senior defensive end didn't stand in front of the blue background with the ND logos for his postgame debriefing, didn't parrot a script. His heart was too heavy after ND's 41-24 humbling from Air Force Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium shoved this Irish football team a little deeper into infamy." ..... Eric Hanson - South Bend Tribune<
Baton Rouge Advocate LSU beat writer Scott Rabalais writes that the Tigers get a second chance at being #1 this year.... "Now we get to see if the team that can't stand prosperity can stand prosperity. Remember how impressively the 2003 LSU Tigers kept winning and what a struggle it was for them to squeeze through into that No. 2 spot in the BCS championship game? This season has been just the opposite. The Tigers seem to struggle every week but today will find themselves on top of the college football world, No. 1 in the BCS standings." .... Scott Rabalais - Baton Rouge Advocate
